The Prospectus Story

Scoping Paper

In early 2008 Wyre Forest District Council launched proposals to develop a Prospectus for the regeneration of Kidderminster.The first stage was the publishing of the Prospectus Scoping Paper, which built on the Kidderminster Economic Development and Regeneration Strategy, and set out the key issues, options and opportunities present in the town. The Scoping Paper introduced some of the key geographic areas for physical regeneration in the town as well as some of the overarching themes.

Consultation of the Scoping Paper took place in Spring 2008 with summary leaflets and promotional postcards distributed around the town, as well as a successful run of articles in the Kidderminster Shuttle newspaper. The Shuttle's website also hosted a forum for people to post their thoughts on the regeneration plans.

Draft Prospectus

In Summer 2008 the responses to the Scoping Paper consultation were considered as part of the development the Draft Regeneration Prospectus. Taylor Young architects and urban designers were appointed at this time to help identify some of the key areas for physical regeneration and to work up images to help visualise the potential. Amion economic regeneration consultants were also appointed to consider the investment and employment prospects.

Kidderminster College through their off-shoot digital media company, Green Fuse Media, were also commissioned to produce a promotional DVD that presented the ideas in the Prospectus and helped bring the project to life and deliver it to a wider audience.

In Winter 2008 the Draft Prospectus was launched and was put out for consultation. For this consultation a manned roadshow display was set up in the four different areas of the town over four days. Summary leaflets were again handed out to the public which included a tear-off comment card at the back. Permanent mini-displays were also set up at Kidderminster Library and the Worcestershire Hub in the town hall. In addition to this, a further series of articles were also included in the Kidderminster Shuttle newspaper.

Kidderminster Prospectus and the ReWyre Initiative

In January 2009 an adoption document, which provided the context to the development of the prospectus and set out the strategy to see the initiative through to eventual implementation of the final Prospectus, was approved by the Council.

Throughout Spring and Summer 2009 the final document was produced. Kidderminster based digital media company Citizen-imedia were commissioned to create a brand for the project and to design the Prospectus document itself. This is where the ReWyre Initiative was born as a new brand to encompass the regeneration work for the town and the wider District.

On the 30th September 2009 the ReWyre Initiative and the Prospectus document were officially launched. A meeting was held with a range of public sector regeneration agencies in Kidderminster including leading Directors and politicians from Wyre Forest District Council and Worcestershire County Council together with regional directors from Advantage West Midlands, the Homes and Communities Agency and British Waterways in the company of the MP for Wyre Forest, Dr Richard Taylor and the Chair of the Wyre Forest Matters Local Strategic Partnership, Ray Brookes.

A showing of the promotional film precluded a signing of a memorandum of understanding by the different agencies which pledge their support for the ReWyre Initiative.